AP Interview: Top US general confident in Afghans KABUL (AP) — The top commander of U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan believes government security forces have improved faster than expected and will be ready to take the lead in the 11-year-old war against the Taliban when foreign combat forces take a back seat this spring, just in time for the fighting season to begin. Marine Gen. John Allen told The Associated Press that the main job of the International Assistance Force over the next two years ...

Mexico’s new president mostly mum on drug violence MEXICO CITY (AP) — Two months after President Enrique Pena Nieto took office promising to reduce violent crime, the killings linked to Mexico’s drug cartels continue unabated. Only the government’s talk about them has dropped. Eighteen members of a band and its retinue were kidnapped and apparently slain over the weekend in the northern border state of Nuevo Leon by gunmen who asked them to name their cartel affiliation before they were shot a...

Egypt army chief warns state could collapse PORT SAID, Egypt (AP) — Residents of this Mediterranean coastal city burying their dead from Egypt’s wave of political violence vented their fury at Egypt’s Islamist president and the Muslim Brotherhood on Tuesday, demanding his ouster and virtually declaring a revolt against his rule, as the head of the military warned Egypt may collapse under the weight of its turmoil. Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi’ strongly worded comments, his first since the...

Japan’s airlines replaced 787 batteries many times TOKYO (AP) — All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines said they replaced lithium-ion batteries in their Boeing 787 Dreamliners on multiple occasions before a battery overheating incident led to the worldwide grounding of the jets. ANA said Wednesday it replaced batteries on its 787 aircraft some 10 times because they failed to charge properly or showed other problems, and informed Boeing about the swaps. Japan Airlines said it had also replaced l...

Tremors, gases will be best proof of NK nuke test SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — With North Korea appearing set to detonate an atomic device, the U.N. agency that detected two previous tests says it is prepared to confirm an explosion when it takes place. But experts say it might be difficult to establish whether the blast is nuclear in nature. The best indication of a test will be seismic tremors and gases released into the air, phenomena that the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nucl...

Peace envoy says Syria is ’being destroyed’ UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The international envoy to Syria told the Security Council on Tuesday that “Syria is being destroyed bit by bit” and his mediation effort cannot go forward unless the council unites to push the Syrian government and opposition forces toward some compromise. The Security Council has been divided over Syria for months, with the United States, Britain, France and other Western powers backing the armed opposition and pushing ...

US eyes drone base in Africa with al-Qaida in mind WASHINGTON (AP) — Plans to base unarmed American surveillance drones in the African nation of Niger highlight the Obama administration’s growing concern about extremist influences in the volatile region. They also raise tough questions about how to contain al-Qaida and other militant groups without committing U.S. ground forces in yet another war. In the short run, a drone base would enable the U.S. to give France more intelligence on the mili...

Could Kerry, Hagel drive reboot in US-Cuba ties? HAVANA (AP) — The nominee for U.S. Secretary of State, Sen. John Kerry, once held up millions of dollars in funding for secretive U.S. democracy-building programs in Cuba. Defense Secretary hopeful Chuck Hagel has called the U.S. embargo against the communist-run island “nonsensical” and anachronistic. Both men are now poised to occupy two of the most important positions in President Barack Obama’s Cabinet, leading observers on both sides of t...

Hospital: 61 killed in Venezuela prison riot CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The death toll has risen to 61 following fierce gunbattles between inmates and National Guard troops at a Venezuelan prison, a hospital director said Saturday. About 120 more people were wounded in one of the deadliest prison riots in the nation’s history. Penitentiary Service Minister Iris Varela said Saturday that officials had begun evacuating inmates from the Uribana prison in Barquisimeto and transferring them to...

Egyptians riot after soccer fans sentenced to die CAIRO (AP) — Relatives and angry young men rampaged through the Egyptian city of Port Said on Saturday in assaults that killed at least 27 people following death sentences for local fans involved in the country’s worst bout of soccer violence. Unrest surrounding the second anniversary of Egypt’s revolution also broke out in Cairo and other cities for a third day, with protesters clashing for hours with riot police who fired tear gas that encom...

Chavez starting more medical treatment in Cuba SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has defeated a respiratory infection and has begun additional medical treatment in Cuba after struggling with complications following cancer surgery more than six weeks ago, a government spokesman said Saturday. Venezuelan Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said that it remains unclear how soon Chavez could return home, and did not specify the kind of treatment he is receiving. “Vice P...

Angry protests leave 7 dead on Egypt anniversary CAIRO (AP) — Violence erupted across Egypt on Friday as tens of thousands took to the streets to deliver an angry backlash against President Mohammed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood, demanding regime change on the second anniversary of the revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak. At least seven people were killed. Two years to the day after protesters first rose up against the autocratic ex-president, the new phase of Egypt’s upheaval was on di...

Greek police storm metro depot to end strikeATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek riot police have stormed the Athens subway train depot, where striking workers had barricaded themselves in. The operation comes after the government issued an emergency order to force them to end an eight-day strike in an escalating standoff over austerity measures. Police broke through the gates and removed dozens of strikers in the pre-dawn raid on Friday. Authorities blocked off roads leading to the depot in wes...

Worms: A Zimbabwe snack, from tree to dinner table GWANDA, Zimbabwe (AP) — In Zimbabwe, mopane worms are a staple part of the diet in rural areas and are considered a delicacy in the cities. They can be eaten dry, as crunchy as potato chips, or cooked and drenched in sauce. When harvest season for the worms began recently, I decided to document the process, and I found it somewhat stomach-turning. But the worms can be mighty tasty and they’re very nutritious. Here’s the scoop on mopane worms. ...

Envoy: SKorea’s Park open to dialogue with NKorea SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s new president will not tolerate North Korean provocations but will continue to push for dialogue with Pyongyang, a special envoy to President-elect Park Geun-hye said just hours after the North’s top governing body declared it would continue atomic tests and rocket launches. Park is strongly urging North Korea to refrain from conducting a nuclear test that could only worsen the tensions on the Korean Pen...

Dutch, Britons, Germans warned to leave Benghazi LONDON (AP) — Britain, Germany and the Netherlands urged their citizens to immediately leave the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi on Thursday, warning of an imminent threat against Westerners days after a deadly hostage crisis in neighboring Algeria. European officials told The Associated Press that schools were among the potential targets. The warnings came a day after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton testified to Congress about ...

Mexico, France divided on release of Frenchwoman PARIS (AP) — She left Mexico to jeers of “killer!” but touched down Thursday in Paris to the fanfare of a state welcome. Seven years in prison in Mexico on kidnapping charges and a flawed trial made Frenchwoman Florence Cassez a cause celebre in France, where her innocence seemed nearly beyond question upon her return. Even though the court that ordered her release did not rule on her culpability, she declared to the throngs of journalists wai...

After UN acts, NKorea vows to beef up nukes SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea swiftly lashed out against the U.N. Security Council’s condemnation of its December launch of a long-range rocket, saying Wednesday that it will strengthen its military defenses — including its nuclear weaponry — in response. The defiant statement from North Korea’s Foreign Ministry was issued hours after the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution condemning Pyongyang’s Dec. 12 rocket launch as ...

Netanyahu narrowly wins Israeli election JERUSALEM (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his hard-line allies fared far worse than expected in a parliamentary election Tuesday, likely forcing him to reach across the aisle to court a popular political newcomer to cobble together a new coalition. While Netanyahu appeared positioned to serve a third term as prime minister, the results marked a major setback for his policies and could force him to make new concessions to restart l...

US begins transporting French troops to Mali SEGOU, Mali (AP) — American planes transported French troops and equipment to Mali, a U.S. military spokesman said Tuesday, as Malian and French forces pushed into the Islamist-held north. The town of Douentza had been held by Islamist rebels for four months, located 195 kilometers (120 miles) northeast of Mopti, the previous line-of-control held by the Malian military in Mali’s narrow central belt. The Islamist fighters have controlled the va...